Abstract: With global climate change and the diversification of agricultural cropping systems, the production demand for late-sowing autumn sesame in the sesame-growing regions south of the Yangtze River in China has been steadily increasing. Screening for late-sowing tolerant autumn sesame varieties is of great significance for the development of the sesame industry in southern China. In this study, 104 sesame varieties from different ecological regions in China were used as experimental materials. They were sown in early August(sesame in Jiangxi Province is typically sown from mid-May to early July). Eight trait indicators were measured for each variety, including plant height, first capsule height, infertile top length, effective fruit stalk length, number of capsules per plant, seeds per capsule, 1000-seed weight, and seed yield per plant. A comprehensive evaluation was conducted based on descriptive statistics, correlation analysis, cluster analysis and grey correlation analysis. The results showed that under delayed sowing conditions, sesame varieties from Henan and Hubei exhibited abundant genetic diversity across the eight traits, as reflected by the mean values, ranges, coefficient of variation, and diversity indices. Notably, the diversity indices of varieties from Anhui and Jiangxi were slightly lower than those from Henan and Hubei. However, sesame varieties from Liaoning, Hebei and Shanxi exhibited relatively low levels across the evaluated indicators for their respective traits. Correlation analysis shows that under delayed sowing conditions, the traits that show a highly significant positive correlation with single plant yield are plant height, first capsule height, number of capsules per plant and seeds per capsule. Grey correlation analysis shows that the number of capsules per plant, plant height, the length of the effective axis, and the quantity of capsules have significant impacts on yield. In conclusion, Ganzhi 7, Zhongzhi 23, Zhongzhi 35 and LZ black sesame were identified as important breeding materials for delayed sowing tolerance.